Daughter of War
by Virgo626
Summary: Aria Orland is a daughter of Ares at Camp Half Blood. She's been there long enough to witness Thalia's Pine Tree firsthand. She though she would never live to see the Great Prophecy come true. Boy was she wrong.
1. The Cool Girl Becomes a Pine Tree

At first, I didn't believe it either, but the gods of Olympus are real. These gods now reside over the Empire State Building in Mount Olympus. Sometimes, gods comes down to Earth and have... um, affairs with mortals. The result: a half blood. Im one of them. Aria Orland, daughter Ares, the god of war, anger, and bloodlust.

I'm quite proud to be in the Ares Cabin. I'm a great fighter, and I have good control over weapons. So far, I'm the only one who actually can control weapons. Like, levitate a sword to fly right at your opponent's face. You should know they have this crazy welcoming ritual of dunking peiple's head in toilets. They tried it on me, but boy did it fail. They found themselves in the infirmary.

At least a week after I came to Camp Half Blood, the only safe place in the world for demigods, three more were on their way. One of them, I had heard was a daughter of Zeus.

* * *

I strode around the camp. It was almost time to go back to the cabins, and i had some free time. As I walked, I would practice for battle. I'd flip, then activate my celestial bronze weapon. It was disguised as a bronze chain bracelet, and all it took was one hard tap like I meant it for it to turn into a six foot long spear made of celestial bronze, which was currently unnamed.

The beauty of weapons: usually you give them their own name. There were few that were already named: Anaklusmos, Katroptris, and others. Mine was a gift from my father, Area, with a note that said, "Choose the name wisely". Greek gods are known for being vague.

"Come on!" I suddenly heard a male voice shout. "We're almost to camp!"

I recognized the voice of Grover Underwood, a satyr protector. He had been assigned to the Zeus girl.

I suddenly felt edgy. It was usually only a feeling when monsters were around, but it seemed amplified. Like there were so many more monsters.

There was a crash, and a little girl screamed, "Grover!"

I ran to the top of Half Blood Hill, and what I saw scared the living daylights out of me. Hades's three Furies whose names escaped me except for Alecto, and a whole army of hellhounds. Hellhounds were large, dog like creatures of the Underworld with black fur and red eyes. If I remembered correctly, they were offspring of Nyx, goddess of the night, and Cerberus, Hades's guard dog which was literally named Spot (long story. Juicy gossip. I'll explain later), though why a goddess would be banging up with a three headed dog was a concept that bewildered me. Mythology gets weird sometimes.

Grover ran towards the hill followed by three demigods. One was small and blonde, the other spiky haired, dressed in black. I knew I was going to like this girl. Their male companion was tall and sandy haired.

The black haired girl suddenly stopped. "Keep going! I'll hold them off!"

I ran. You must be thinking that I'm stupid, so thanks. I have moments. I activated my spear and ran down the hill.

"Aria?" Grover questioned.

I didn't answer, I only stabbed an incoming hellhound, causing it to disintegrate. I knew that it wouldn't stay dead. Monsters reformed over time. But it was still one hellhound down. A bazillion more to go, because only now I realized how many hellhounds there were.

The black haired girl had killed a few hellhounds. I finally got a closer look at her. She has spiky black hair and punk-like clothing. Her eyes were electric blue. She must be Zeus's girl.

"No, Thalia, they'll kill you," the boy said.

"You have to keep going, Luke," Thalia said. "Take care of Annabeth and Grover."

Then she faced the army of Hell.

What happened next was a blur. I knew I had frozen because Luke and Grover practically dragged me up the hill. I saw Thalia get thrown across the ground, landing hard on a rock. I already knew she was dying, but I couldn't believe it.

The blonde girl who was obviously Annabeth was crying. She looked about my age. I felt like crying too, but I held back the tears.

Above Thalia, lightning flashed in the sky, followed by a crackle of thunder. Her eyes became blank, and I noticed her hair turning into the tangled roots of a tree. Her skin became brown like bark. She was turning into a pine tree right in front of us.

"How?" I choked on my own words.

"Lord Zeus," Grover breathed. Only later would I realize that he meant that Zeus had turned Thalia into a pine tree, and he wasn't just using the expression.

There was a bluish glow as a barrier of some sort appeared around the camp. The Monsters tried to advance, but it stopped them. Not even the Furies could get through.

"A magic barrier," Luke said.

"Come on," Grover said, and we all ran back into camp.

* * *

The daughter of Zeus was Thalia, and she gave her life to save four. I was one of the four. As she laid dying, her father took pity on her and turned her into a pine tree, then gifted us with the barrier that keeps monsters out.

Even though I knew Thalia for about fifteen seconds, I named my spear after her. Atromitos Thalia. Dauntless Thalia. I would remember her as the girl who made her final against all Hell to save her friends and me, the random person who just showed up and killed monsters like a maniac.

The Great Prophecy foretold a half blood of the Eldest Gods, or the Big Three. We all thought Thalia was the one, but when she died, we thought the prophecy would never come to be. But seven years later, _he_ showed up on our doorstep.


	2. Water Boy Knows Not What Cometh His Way

It's been five years since Thalia's Final Stand, and it makes me distraught that so many campers take the magic barriers for granted.

I am now twelve years old (yes, I was freaking seven when I first killed a hellhound). I have red hair and green eyes. I am ADHD because of superhuman battle reflexes, and dyslexic because my mind is built for Ancient Greek. I am also fast, strong, agile, telumkinetic, and odikinetic. People tell me that Ares must be proud to have a daughter like me. So of course I have to wonder, is he proud? Or is he disappointed?

I was in the sword arena engaged in an intense battle with a straw dummy. I literally ripping it to shreds with a sword when my friend May Taylor came in.

May is seriously beautiful, and even thought I've known her like forever, I still have to suck in my breath every time I see her.

It's not like she tries hard to be beautiful. Being a daughter Aphrodite, she naturally radiated beauty. She had blonde hair and greyish green eyes, and doesn't have to wear makeup to look good. But don't let her good looks fool you, she has incredible fighting skills, and out then to good use. I learned it the hard way.

May and I were paired up for sword practice shortly after she'd been claimed by Aphrodite. I had assumed she would be a pushover obsessed with makeup like the rest of Aphrodite's children, so I decided to hold back because I am such a nice person. Instead, my face ended up in the dirt.

Everyone stared at me because nobody ever expected a Daughter of Aphrodite to win against anybody, let alone a Daughter of Ares who was holding back (though I knew she could go on par with me even with me at my full extent). I remembered getting up and saying, "She's tough for a child of Aphrodite. I like her."

It was a good lesson: Never underestimate anybody.

"Grover's back, and he brought a new half blood," May told me.

"A newbie, eh?" I questioned. "Who is it?"

"A guy named Percy Jackson," May answered.

I followed May. Both of us had been here for so long that we could probably draw a map of camp entirely by memory. On the way, she filled me in on the details. Apparently, this bot hadn't been sensed by monsters because the stench of his stepfather's blood was overly mortal, even though Percy apparently had a strong scent. I never understood what exactly half bloods smelled like to monsters and satyrs. Meat sandwiches? Papa John's six cheese pizza? Taco Bell's burrito supreme? Whatever we smelled like, our scent could get us killed.

Apparently, Percy had fought off the Minotaur, which was impressive for a twelve year old, but not before the monster had killed his mother, Sally Jackson. I did not want to be the one to break the news to him.

"Annabeth's with him," May finished.

"Oh my gods!" I exclaimed. "You left him with Annabeth?"

"She's not that bad," May defended, crossing her arms.

"Remember my friend Maxwell Bean?" I questioned.

"Yeah, son of Dionysus, I believe?" May said with a snort.

Dionysus was the god of wine, and also our crabby camp director. It was a punishment from Zeus for chasing an off limits wood nymph. Poor nymphs. They're always being chase by God's and satyrs and in one weird case, a mortal. Long story, juicy gossip,but don't ask me unless you want a few broken bones. You can ask Malcolm Pace, the son of Athena. He was there, and I trust him not to give away any vital info.

"Annabeth-," I began, but another female voice cut me off.

"Did someone mention me?" Annabeth questioned.

Annabeth was my age, with curly blonde hair and stormy gray eyes, as custom for a child of Athena. Most cabins have distinct features. For my cabin, it's large muscles and godly sneers. For May's cabin, it's natural beauty and usually fear of looking bad. For Annabeth's cabin, it was blonde hair and gray eyes. I swear, the most popular Athena kid would be the dark haired blue eyed one that would come sometime. (I bet on it with Maxwell and our friend Klein Hatfield).

"Hi, Annabeth!" I said, hoping she hadn't heard the first part of the conversation.

"How's Percy?" May asked.

"I just got some nectar for him," Annabeth told us. "Did you know he drools in his sleep?"

I laughed a bit. "Of course he does."

We sat on the porch of the Big House, where Mr. D and Chiron were playing cards.

"Grover should be bringing Percy here," Annabeth told the camp director, who snorted in reply.

A few minutes later, Grover came, leading Percy

I glanced over Percy. He was rather skinny, with messy black hair and sea green eyes. He could have been a son of Hermes, only he didn't have kinda pointy ears, which most of Hermes's kids have. He wasn't muscular, so he couldnt be from Ares. Maybe he was the dark haired Athena kid Maxwell, Klein, and I have been talking about, but the expression on his face proved him otherwise. And he definitely wasn't an Aphrodite kid. I've been hanging out with one for years, and I know what kind of aura is expected of them even if they didn't want to draw attention to themselves, and this guy did not have it. Maybe he was Apollo's son. Yeah, let's go with that.

"That's Mr. D," Grover said. "He's the camp director be polite. And that's Annabeth Chase, Aria Orland, and May Taylor. They're campers, and they've been here longer than anybody. And you know Chiron..."

There was a friendly reunion between Percy and Chiron. Chiron then called us over and asked us to show Percy to the bunk after Annabeth checked it.

"Sure," I shrugged. "I don't have anything better to do."

May elbowed me painfully in the ribs.

"You drool in your sleep," Annabeth to Percy before sprinting away.

Percy, Mr. D, and Chiron engaged in a conversation. May listened, but I wasn't paying attention. Instead, I fiddled with Atromitos around my wrist as I listened to Chiron explaining the concept of the gods. Basically, when the center of power shifted to the West, the gods moved with it. That's the best way I can explain it at the moment.

"I need to get back to the cabin," May finally said. "I think Drew may have let out the perfume again."

"I'm going to make sure no one blew Cabin 5 up," I added, and the two of us left.

Cabin Five is the cabin where me and the rest of my half siblings stayed. It was bright red, and I didn't need to be an Aphrodite kid to know it needed a new paint job. The roof was lined with barbed wire and a stuffed hesd of a wild boar was mounted above the door. They always played rock music from popular rock bands, like AC/DC or Guns n Roses, the current song was Welcome to the Jungle, which accurately described the cabin. Inside, I saw Lance Silver and Sherman Yang arm wrestle while Marilyn, Isobel, and Gerti argued over weapons. Mark and Ellis were sparring with sharp knives, and Clarisse la Rue stood watching the campers.

Clarisse was large and bulky, with stringy brown hair and an XXXL camp shirt. She was my secon-in-command. She was older than me, but I had been on one more question than she had. (The quest involved that mortal chasing a nymph).

"So where's the newbie?" She asked me

"VIP tour with Chiron," I said, then glared at her. "And don't dunk anyone's head in the toilet!"

Clarisse shrugged. "No promises, A."

I rolled my eyes before continuing to the Hermes Cabin. Annabeth was reading a Greek architecture book. She wanted to be an architect when she grew up, and with her brains and creativity, I tell her go for it. For me, I just wanted to stay alive long enough to actually grow up.

May, Percy, and Chiron approached Cabin Eleven. I spoke, "You know, you're lucky Percy. You get to make a few friends here. I got claimed by Ares and I was put in the Ares Cabin and somehow I'm the head counselor of the cabin of ruffians."

Percy laughed nervously. "Is it Cabin Five?"

"Naturally," I said.

Percy entered the Cabin and tripped coming in the door causing the other kids to laugh. I caught sight of Klein Hatfield laughing and gave him the stink eye.

Luke Castellan, the counselor for Hermes, gave Percy his own personal spot on the floor of the cabin.

"This is Luke," Annabeth said.

Luke wrapped his arm around May. I knew they had been dating for a while, but I still turned away. I wasn't such a big fan of physical contact.

Across the lawn, I saw Clarisse and her three friends Anita, Diane, and Nikki (padum pff!). If you've ever watched My Big Fat Greek Wedding, you'd get the joke. While Annabeth and May explained how monsters work to Percy, I eased myself over the railing and jogged over to my half sisters.

"You planning to go dunking someone's head in the toilets?" I questioned.

All four looked at me. I noted the look of surprise on their faces with satisfaction. They apparently hadn't expected me.

"I wasn't expecting you," Clarisse said.

I crossed my arms and raised an eyebrow, "Yeah no, that was really obvious."

"We do it to everyone," Anita said. "What makes Percy so special."

"You have a crush on him?" Diane added, and the others laughed.

"I thought it was Aphrodite's Cabin's job to make bad matches," I said. "No offense to May."

I heard a crash from the Ares Cabin. I turned around and realized too late that it was a diversion created by Sherman or Mark for Clarisse, Anita, Diane, and Nikki. When I turned around again, I saw that they had already approached Percy, Annabeth, and May.

Sherman, Mark, Lance, Ellis, Marilyn, Isobel, and Gerti joined me on the lawn as a watched Clarisse.

"Wasn't the distraction clever?" Mark questioned.

"We're children of Ares, we aren't meant to be clever," I said, shaking my head.

"Those are true words," Sherman said.

Clarisse was now dragging Percy over to the girl's bathroom. Me and the rest of my siblings ran after her.

"Decided to join the party, Aria?" Nikki questioned. She was jogging backwards, her curly brown hair flying in front of her.

"She could do better," Anita shrugged. Anita had cropped blonde hair and brown eyes.

I saw Clarisse lowering Percy's head towards the water, and suddenly, the toilet exploded, showering Clarisse with water. She screamed as she hit the floor.

Anita, Diane, and Nikki ran to help her, and i made the mistake of joining them. Next thing I knew, I was soaking wet. My clothes felt heavy as they stuck to my skin. I stood looking like an idiot,y jaw dropped and arms out like a zombie. Through the sheet of wet red hair covering me eyes, I saw Clarisse, Anita, Diane, and Nikki get pushed out the door. The others cleared a path in order not to join the chaos. Not even Annabeth or May were spared from the start, but they hadn't been pushed out the door. They stood on either side of me, shivering a hit from the water.

"Someone's gotta pay for this," I growled. "No matter how big if assholes they are, nobody hurts my siblings and gets away with it."

"Ari, calm down," Annabeth put a hand on my arm.

I sneered at Percy before stalking out of the bathroom. The campers had gathered around. I paused only to push my wet bangs out of my face before snapping, "Out of my way!"

"Oh, you're so dead, boy," Clarisse snarled at Percy.

Percy should have kept his mouth shut, but instead, he retorted. "Wanna gurgle on toilet water again? Keep your mouth shut."

The other campers laughed. I glared at them to shut them up before I helped the three Area's girls drag Clarisse back to the cabin.

"I could strangle him!" Clarisse growled.

"Polish your spears," I announced once everyone was back in the cabin. "On Friday, during capture the flag, we'll have a new punching bag."


	3. How Come This Punk Beats the Ares Cabin?

**Im two chapters into the story and realized I forgot to give some character info! Anyways, here it is:**

 **Aria Orland, daughter of Ares**

 **May Taylor, daughter of Aphrodite ***owned by CyberChick135*****

 **Maxwell Bean, son of Dionysus**

 **Klein Hatfield, son of Hermes**

 **Anita, Diane, Nikki, Marilyn, Isobel, Gerti, daughters of Ares**

 **Lance Silver, son of Ares**

 **Aidan Koler, son of Aphrodite**

* * *

On the night of Capture the Flag, the Ares Cabin all joined the Red Team, and we were delighted to hear that Percy was on the Blue Team. That meant we could beat him up. I activated my magic spear, Atromitos, and Clarisse had Maimer the electric. Everyone else brandished their weapons menacingly as they sneered at the opposing team.

I saw Annabeth on the other team, wielding her celestial bronze knife. I spotted Klein Hatfield with his own knife, while Maxwell Bean was on my team, with his bow and arrows ready. May was also on my team, and was the only Aphrodite camper who actually look ready, wielding her whip. Next to her was Aidan Koler, her half-brother. He was wielding his sword, and his hair was black and his eyes dark red (he could take on any appearance) We also recruited Castor and Pollux, Maxwell's half brothers, as well as Charles Beckendorf, Jake Mason, and Nyssa Barrera of the Hephaestus Cabin. I'm also not sure why, but we had Demeter. The more the merrier, I guess.

"Heroes!" Chiron banged his hoof on the marble. "You know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed. The banner must be prominently displayed, with no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but not bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed. I will serve as a referee and battlefield medic. Arm yourselves!"

My armor was heavy, but I held the weight just fine. My spear glowed a bit under the moonlight. My helmet was shaped like a boar, a symbol of my father, with a red plume. A large vulture sat on my shoulder, eyeing the opposing team with beady yellow eyes. I believe his name was Enyalius, or Enya for short.

When the game began, I took Lance, Sherman, Mark, and Gerti, our best warriors, to find Percy, with Clarisse in the back. We all surrounded Percy, who was on border patrol, before we charged, yelling war cries.

"Cream the punk!" Clarisse screamed. Her spear, Maimer, flickered with red sparks, mirroring Atromitos. Maimer was an electric spear, and sparks was one of Atromitos's abilities.

I didn't think Percy would do good against the others, but he did. I growled, "Never send a camper to do a counselor's job."

Glancing over, I saw Maxwell fighting May. She was fighting gracefully like a swan, and Maxwell had to conjure his own whip of sharp vines to go on par with her. Jake Mason from the Hephaestus Cabin was fighting Klein. Youd think he was an idiot, since he was so much smaller than Jake, but Klein kept dodging Jake's attacks with amazing agility.

Just then, Enya came to me. He screeched and cawed, by I understood him. He had reported that Malcolm Pace was going for our flag.

"Keep them attacking," I muttered to Clarisse before I followed Enya, who was flying in the direction of the intruder.

Of course I knew that Athena children always had a plan. I hang out with their counselor. They're a pain to watch movies with. They point out acting mistakes and things that would be impossible, basically ruining the whole movie.

But not the point.

I'm a daughter of Ares. I don't plan. I _do_. I hefted my shield and aimed my spear at Malcolm's back and i charged. I'll admit that wasn't stealthy, and all the twigs my boots snapped alerted Malcolm of my presence. He drew his sword and blocked my spear.

"No maiming," he reminded.

"You're wearing armor, you're fine," I said dismissively. I tried to stab him, but he married again. He slashed down with his sword, but it bounced off my shield. Most Ares children don't use shields so they could use both hands to fight, but a shield had saved my life about a zillion times, so I respected the shield. Plus, I have my weapon power.

You might be wondering why I haven't used it yet. Just let me tell my story.

I snapped my fingers, calling upon the power of Ares. I imagined Malcolm's sword flying out of his hand. Two seconds later, it happened. The sword spun out of his hands. I dropped my shield (and by that I mean I turned it back into a bronze chain bracelet) and grabbed Malcolm's arm and judo-flipped him.

I turned around and saw that Percy had defeated every one of my siblings.

"WHAT?" I roared. "HOW?"

Then I heard shouts of excitement from the other team. Luke was holding the red banner high, with his brothers Travis and Connor Stoll flanking him. Beckendorf, Jake, and Nyssa were trying to get past a wall of Apollo kids.

When the Hermes kids crossed the creek, I took off my helmet and threw it onto the ground. It rolled through a dirt, but I didn't notice. I just crossed my arms and glared at Percy.

"What?" He shrugged innocently. He was standing in the creek. the air beside him shimmered and Annabeth appeared beside him. Of course. Her magic Yankees cap. When he stepped out of the water, he started to collapse.

I paled. I suddenly started to see what was happening. The exploding toilets, the strength he had in the water. He couldn't be...

Suddenly, we all heard a growl. The cheering died away as a black dog with red eyes appeared. I knew this type of monster. A hellhound, I readied my spear, but aside from that, nobody moved except for Annabeth, who yelled, "Percy run!"

The hellhound lunged at Percy and ripped right through his armor. Some of the Apollo kids nocked arrows, but I was closer and better with weapons. I yelled and threw Atromitos right at the hellhound. It nestled into its neck, and it fell dead.

"Do immortales!" Annabeth cursed. "That's a hellhound from the Fields of Punishment!"

"Someone from inside the camp must have summoned it," I said.

"It's all Percy's fault!" Clarisse screamed. "Percy summoned it!"

"Shut up, Clarisse!" I snarled at her.

"You're wounded, Percy," Annabeth said. "Get into the water."

Percy didn't hesitate, maybe he was too tired. But his injuries healed. I gasped, and i wasn't alone. above Percy, a holographic image of a green trident appeared.

"No," I muttered, "No no no no no no NO!" My voice rose to a shout.

"Look, I'm sorry, I don't know..." Percy tried to apologize.

"Percy, um..." Annabeth inclined up above his head. When he finally looked up, the symbol had started to fade, but it was clear he'd seen it.

"Your father," Annabeth said. "This is really not good."

"It had been determined," Chiron said. The other campers started kneeling. I snarled at Percy, very aware of how much I looked like my father when I did that, but I knelt. His father might be ome of the Big Three, but he'd need to earn my respect.

"My father?" Percy asked, and I wanted to smite him for his stupidity.

"Poseidon," said Chiron. "Earthshaker, Stormbringer. Father of Horses. Hail, Perseus Jackson, son of the Sea God."


	4. Call Me Stupid Again, I Dare You

The next morning, I got a copy of the newspaper, flipped through it, and smiled when I saw an article about the mysterious disappearance of Percy Jackson and Sally Ugliano. I walked across the lawn and met May.

May looked at the paper in my hands, "What are you doing with the mortal newspaper?"

When I didn't answer, she glanced at the page the paper was open to, and the phone number that was circled in permanent marker. She frowned at me, "Really Aria?"

I scowled, "No one has respect for the Ares Cabin, and neither does he. He needs to be taken down a couple notches."

The door to the Poseidon Cabin opened and Percy came out. My siblings who were scattered across the lawn flashed him dirty looks while some others stayed away.

When Percy left I snuck into his cabin and out the paper down on his bed. When I exited the cabin, May spoke, "I'm going to pretend I didn't see that.'

"You're the best," I smiled. "Wanna go to the sword arena? Luke might be there." I winked at her.

May blushed, "Um... Yeah sure." She said.

There was really nothing else to do right now. Dionysus's children, Castor, Pollux, and Maxwell, were walking around the strawberry fields, helping the strawberries grow, assisted by a few of Demeter's children. Apollo's cabin were playing a volleyball game against the satyrs.

We walked to the sword arena, and sure enough, Luke was there, along with Percy. Apparently the rest of the Hermes Cabin had gotten too nervous about what Percy did to the Ares Cabin, so only Luke was brave enough to fight Percy.

The fight was over, and Luke sheathed his sword before walking over to May and hugging her.

I tilted my head, "Isnt there a rule against public displays of affection?"

"Just in mortal schools," Luke shrugged.

"Well there should be one for the sword arena," I retorted. I summoned my spear and scewered the three dummies in front of me. Percy winced, as if imagined what I could have done to him. I liked having that effect.

Percy was soon summoned to the Big House. He left with Grover, leaving me, Luke, and May. Five seconds later, Annabeth came in. "Aria, May, we're going on that quest."

I narrowed my eyes, "Excuse me?"

"There's a quest, and i volunteered us," Annabeth said. "War, persuasion, and strategy, since the other one is skilled in the art of idiocy."

"Wait... You can't mean Percy?" I asked.

Annabeth nodded.

Luke had been silent, and May looked back at him, "You okay?" She asked.

Luke nodded and smiled at May, "Yeah, I'm fine. I just have somewhere to be." He left the arena.

"We need to get to the Big House," Annabeth said.

I groaned and shrunk my spear to my bobby pin and pinned it into my hair. Then Annabeth, May, and I left towards the Big House. Percy, Grover, and Chiron were there. I silently thanked Grover for being brave enough to volunteer for the quest. He could probably keep us from flaying each other.

On second thought, maybe not.

"Gee," Percy was saying sarcastically. "I wonder who'd be stupid enough to volunteer for a quest like this."

"Here's an idea," I spoke up. "How about you say that again with my spear sticking out of your gut?"

May elbowed me.

Percy blinked, looking surprised and confused.

"I've been waiting a long time for a quest, Seaweed Brain," Annabeth said. "Athena is no fam of Poseidon, but if you're going to save the world, you'll need us. I'm the smartest one in camp. Aria is the most physically capable fighter with a mastery over weapons. May has persuasion on her side, and she's a great fighter. You'll need us."

"If you do say so yourself, I suppose you have a plan, Wise Girl?" Percy asked.

I snarled at him. May scowled, "Do you want our help or not?"

"A quintet," Percy said. "That'll work."

"Well I'm not sure this'll work without us killing each other," I said sharply.

"Did you mean you'll kill all of us?" Percy retorted.

I narrowed my eyes. Percy had nerve, and bones he was volunteering for breaking. "You're a sarcastic little shit. You might be the son of Poseidon, but to me, you're still a lowly little maggot!"

Chiron had been silent up until now, but now he spoke, "Excellent. This afternoon, we can take you as far as the bus terminal in Manhattan. After that, you are in your own."

 _Did he hear any of our argument just now?_ I thought angrily.

Chiron sent us to pack, so I packed. I stormed into the Ares Cabin and grabbed my backpack and started packing.

"What happened?" Clarisse asked.

"I'm going on the quest," I said darkly. "With that little punk." I stuffed an extra change of clothes into the backpack, along with my toothbrush and hairbrush. I had two hundred dollars in mortal money and a pile of golden drachma. I pulled on a black leather jacket over my orange Camp Half Blood T-shirt. I was also wearing dark skinny jeans and combat boots. My spear was on bobby pin form, pinning my short red hair back, and my shield was a bronze chain bracelet. I packed some extra knives before zipping up my backpack.

"Well why don't you refuse?" Marilyn asked.

"Are you an idiot? That would give Ares a bad name," I growled. "Plus, this is a big quest, not that little one Apollo sent me on."

Alright, I'll give you the details of that quest I promised to break your bones if you asked me about it. Apollo had his eyes on a flower nymph named Dahlia. And remember how I mentioned once a mortal chased the nymph? I don't know how he missed the fact that Dahlia basically looked like an elf, but he started chasing her.

Of course Apollo got mad, but since gods always hire heroes to do their dirty work, me, Malcolm, and Aidan Koler had to go take care of it.

Somehow I managed not to kill the stupid mortal.

Anyway, I met the other questers near the strawberry fields.

May had pulled her blonde hair back into a ponytail. She was wearing a her orange Half Blood T-shirt and light blue jeans. She somehow managed to make that look glamorous, as most Aphrodite children did. Her whip was in scarf form around her neck.

She was saying goodbye to her brothers and sisters. I looked at them and tried to find anyone I recognized. I saw Aidan Koler, who was sporting brown hair and green eyes today. I saw Silena Beauregard, Drew Tanaka, Lacy, and Mitchell. Everybody else was just a bunch of girls with makeup and hair that was no doubt dolloped with hair products every morning.

I could only imagine the smell of the Aphrodite Cabin.

Because when you live with a bunch of warriors, you get used to BO. In the Aphrodite Cabin, it always reeked of designer perfume. It was like a backwards Febreze commercial.*

Annabeth had packed her magic Yankees cap, her long bronze knife, and a book on architecture written in Ancient Greek. She was talking to her siblings, all of whom were blonde and gray eyed. I only recognized Malcolm. Everybody else looked the same to me.

Grover was wearing his cap and fake feet. He had filled his bright orange backpack with apples and metal to snack on when he got nervous, and he had a set of Reed pipes his dad had made for him.

Percy was standing there all alone. He didn't have any siblings, or many friends in the camp for that matter. Seeing all the campers there and him alone, it almost made me feel bad.

Then Maxwell, Castor, and Pollux went over to talk to Percy.

The other cabins came filing towards the fields. I could make out the Ares kid, because 1) I live with all of them and thus know each and every one of them on sight, and 2) they were large, smelly, and carried their weapons. I also recognized the elvish, mischievous Hermes kids and the nature friendly Demeter children.

I said goodbye to all of my siblings. Clarisse asked me to murder Percy, which I ignored because I was trying to refrain from sending him to the Underworld int after this quest.

After we said our good-byes, we hiked up Half Blood Hill.

This quest was going to be an interesting one.


End file.
